Mary Lawton got to meet her Valdosta cousins last week. She was thrilled. We promise to come back to South Georgia to see you again before she's all grown up.
With Kent, Aunt Cheryl, and Summer
Let's hope she'll be as pretty as her cousins!
Uncle Butch with Kayla, Kent, and Summer
Kent is a professional baby wrangler. Kent, I forgot to tell you Mary Lawton has another cousin named Kent! He's 15.Last week Mary Lawton started smiling real, big, sweet smiles. (She smiled at me at 2.5 weeks, but no one believes me.) She's also cooing more. Most of her noises are loud grunts and moans, but in the past few days she's started oooh and aaaaaAAH. I love it.
I need to take more pictures and some videos! I'll try to catch that cute, gummy smile and her sweet voice.
Thanks, everyone, for all your suggestions for Mary Lawton's screaming fits. I changed a few things, and she's a happy baby again with a little crying here and there. I sincerely appreciate the recommendations and reading all of the "oh yes, I remember..."
Mary Lawton had her first breastmilk bottle last Thursday. Loved it. No issues. She stared at Sweet LJ the whole time. She had another one on Sunday.
I used to be pretty creative and liked to do craft projects. Then I sort of quit. I guess yard work and home projects became my outlets. Anyway, someone--won't mention any names here--was going to sew me these birds to use for a mobile. No birds (yet?)
So, Mary Lawton and I went to Michael's a week or so ago, and I was inspired when I saw some tiny wooden bird cutouts. I used ribbon, scrapbook paper, 10 wooden birds (glued back-to-back), Mod Podge, and the inside ring of an embroidery hoop to make this.
I think it looks a little cuter than these photos. What pleases me the most is that Mary Lawton really seems to like it! We hung it over the changing pad, since she doesn't use the crib yet. I might make another one for the crib, though, with a few modifications...maybe with the stuffed fabric birds?
Yesterday was Mary Lawton's one-month well baby doctor visit, and she is a well baby!
Weight: 9 lbs., 3 oz. (75th percentile)
Length: 21 3/4 inches (also 75th percentile)
Head: (50-75th percentile)
The doctor was impressed with her almost 2-inch growth in length. We talked to him about her crying fits, and he recommended a few things to us to try to figure out what might be the cause. One of his suggestions was more structure to her day, and I think she would like that (takes after her mama). I'll be working on putting her on a schedule. We already have a morning routine pretty established...we just have to work on the rest of the day! Overall, she's a healthy baby, except for a strange thing going on with her fingernails. One looks like it's about to fall off, and three others look like they're going to meet the same fate. The doctor wasn't too concerned. He said, "well, they'll grow back. " She got her hepatitis B vaccine, and was very brave. She looked surprised, and then started crying about 5 seconds later. Then, after 5 seconds of crying, she stopped. (She screamed all the way home, though. I think she was trying to show off for the nurse by holding back while we were there.)
The weather has been gorgeous this week, and we ate dinner outside last night. Mary Lawton had a very good day and a relaxing evening, as you can see.
Wow...it's already been a month since Mary Lawton joined us. She loves to eat and enjoys bath time. She especially loves having her hair washed and brushed and will settle for a basic head rub, too. She likes stoller walks through the neighborhood sometimes but don't bet on it. She likes the Baby Bjorn and will sleep in it happily for an hour or two while I take care of stuff around the house or walk Coqui. She's discovered the ceiling fans and loves to look at them, and she's discovered her reflection in the mirror. If she hears her Daddy's voice, she turns her head to find him. My heart melts when she does this.
Mary Lawton chatters nonstop. She's quiet only when she's in deep sleep; otherwise, she's constantly talking, sighing, grunting, cooing, squeaking, and squawking. It's pretty hilarious.
Her sleeping is just ok. She usually takes a morning nap and an afternoon nap, but sometimes she fights to stay awake and gets fussy as a consequence. She doesn't have a very good schedule, which I'm fine with right now, but I do want her to have a bedtime routine. We haven't settled on one yet. Her nighttime sleeping is decent, but she really wants to sleep on us--not near us or in another room. We're giving in, partly because we just want to sleep, too, and partly because there is something glorious about co-sleeping. Even Sweet LJ loves it. We might be setting ourselves up for disaster.
Other than the recent screaming fits, she's a good baby, and we're over-the-moon in love. Thanks, Mary Lawton, for coming to be with us.
Small yawning monkey
Jazz handsMary Lawton had such a great day yesterday, and then the tide turned last night around 6:30 PM. She screamed for about 20 minutes (I timed it, since it seems like hours, and it makes me feel better to know it lasts only a short time). Then she screamed off and on for about an hour. Thanks, Melissa and Nancy for the words of encouragement and advice. She does like the front carrier and falls asleep pretty quickly, which allows me to do things around the house. Nancy, I'll ask the doctor about reflux this week.
If my precious girl isn't sleeping or eating, she's screaming. This is a recent development--just started this week. She doesn't cry for hours at a stretch, so I don't know whether it's truly colic. Just regular (bad) gas? I try everything and usually end up putting a hysterically crying baby in her carseat for a trip somewhere. It makes me sad, since I can't stop it, so I often end up crying, too.
She has her one-month check-up next week, so I'll talk to the doctor about it, but I'd love to hear your advice--or even just a "you're not a bad mom. Your baby loves you."
3 weeks old already (a little more than that since I can't seem to find the time to post anymore).
Mary Lawton's getting quite chubby and more and more alert. Some of her recent adventures:
Yesterday was my birthday, and I had such a wonderful day. For the past few years I've taken the day off work to go shopping (which I highly recommend to everyone--don't work on your birthday!) This year my girl and I went to the mall. I mainly went to walk, because it's too cold to go outside, but I ended up buying a few shirts. Sweet LJ took us out to dinner last night and surprised me with the most gorgeous ring I've ever seen (besides my engagement ring, of course.) It's amethyst--Mary Lawton's birth stone.
Going out for my birthday dinnerMy friend Sara came to visit on Sunday, and we enjoyed a glorious snow day. I've never seen flakes so fat. They were like feathers floating down from the sky. Mary Lawton slept through it all, but hopefully it'll snow again when she's big enough to enjoy it.
Sara gets ready to unload a snowball on Mary Lawton.
Sara, thanks for coming to meet Mary Lawton!
Her polar bear coat is a bit big.
Interestingly, the last time it snowed (February 2008), Sara and I hung out that day, too. We went on an 8-mile run that morning, and at the end of the run it started snowing.
Dear umbilical cord stump,
Please fall off so I can take a real bath.
Sincerely,
Mary Lawton
Actually, she doesn't mind bath time much at all. She loves having her hair washed. She loves the towel I warm up in the dryer for her. (I told her today not to get used to that.)
So far Mary Lawton has been to Target (twice!), Once upon a Child, and on three neighborhood walks. Because I'm not used to carrying my camera around with me all the time to document these milestones, I don't have any photos. She slept the whole time on all of these outings, as you can imagine. I was a little nervous about yesterday's Target trip, because I went by myself, but it turned out fine.
Today is Mary Lawton's one week birthday. She loves eating, sleeping, and entertaining us with funny faces. She has tummy time a few minutes a day, and plays (is awake) on her play mat or cat mat for awhile. The dog is in love with her and follows us from room to room. Luckily, the cat is oblivious to her. He doesn't want to be too close to her, and when she cries he can't get away fast enough.
play timeMary Lawton had a number of visitors last week.
Lilly and Alisa
Jan (Jan came by twice!)
Gail and Andrew
and of course her Biffy.
True love
Mary Lawton and her dad
Welcome home!
Welcome home, baby girl.
2 days old
3 days old. A trip to the doctor can really wear a girl out.Weight gain: None. Same as last week.
My BP: 100/60
Val's heartrate: 150s
Today I saw Dr. H. Dr. G is out this week, which was fine with me. I don't think I like her anymore. Dr. H was great, talked to us for a long time, and basically said you'll have the baby in the next 2 weeks. (They will let me go a week past my due date.) Yes, she'll probably 8.5 lbs or more, but that's no problem and the two of you will be fine. Will there be shoulder dysplasia? Who knows. Will she be a giantess? Probably not. I measured 2 weeks behind today, which might be because she's dropping. So, we wait. I feel fine, so I don't mind waiting. My next appointment is with Dr. G, and Sweet LJ is hoping there will be some kind of showdown between her and Dr. H because their attitudes are so different. We like Dr. H's better.
I know this blog is getting boring without photos. I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed lately, but I'll try to do better about taking and uploading photos.
Weight gain: -2
My BP: 105/80
Val's heart rate: 130s
I was pretty nervous about this appointment based on the ultrasound the day before. I didn't know what Dr. G was going to recommend. Would she send me straight to L&D for an induction? We talked awhile about what could happen in the next 2 weeks. In the end, with my total consent, she stripped my membranes (or the gentler euphemism "swept" my membranes). I won't go into the details, but I will say that all the jokers who say "it's not a big deal" are completely high or delusional. Or both. What the membrane strip could do is soften my cervix, promote dilation, trigger labor, or absolutely nothing. It was worth a try. I would rather try this than take a bunch of drugs to ripen my cervix, start contractions, etc. I have a feeling it will do absolutely nothing--this based on the fact that absolutely nothing has happened.
I sat up in bed in the middle of the night and just sat there a minute, and Sweet LJ said, "are you contracting?" He was sooo ready to go to the hospital. His bag sits packed at the foot of the bed.
Yes, I inadvertently lied when I announced the final ultrasound. I had another growth ultrasound on Tuesday to see how big Val is getting. They estimated her weight at 7 lbs., 12 oz. This was at 37 weeks, 4 days. Everything looked fine. As the perinatologist said, I just "make big babies." Then she turned to Sweet LJ and said, "you, too." So, if Val gains a half a pound a week for the next 2.5 weeks--well, you do the math.
Val wouldn't give up the profile shot, but we have a few photos of her chubby cheeks and pointy chin, waving at us.
I was extraordinarily nervous about my appointment with Dr. G the next day, which will be another post.
I saw Dr. H on Friday (January 30), and I fall more in love with her each time. She is so kind and patient and really has a knack for putting you at ease.
Weight gain: I'm not sure. I think around another +2. I have trouble doing the math anymore.
My BP: 100/80
Val's heart rate: 130s-140s
This visit was fine. Fundally*, I'm measuring a week behind. I asked Dr. H about preeclampsia, because the nurse said, "your blood pressure is up!" with some drama after she took it. Dr. H said preeclampsia starts with a BP of 140/90, and also that my BP increase is nothing to be alarmed about. During your 3rd trimester, your BP tends to go up. I still have to go for another growth ultrasound. Everyone seems confused because I'm measuring a week behind, but according to the last ultrasound, Val is getting very big. Sweet LJ thinks she's long and compactly folded up.
*I don't think "fundally" is a word, but it's what is needed here.
I'm getting more and more delinquent on my posts. On January 23 I had an appointment with Dr. G.
Weight gain: +2
My BP: 110/70
Val's heart rate: fluctuating between 120s and 140s
The nurse seemed surprised that I didn't want an internal exam to see if there has been any progress. I told her I have a month to go, and I'm in no hurry. I'm beginning to lose faith in Dr. G. She asked about my January 12 ultrasound and thinks that maybe the baby is getting too big. She tried a few scare tactics on me. She didn't succeed in scaring me, but she succeeded in making me so frustrated that I cried on the way home. I cried when I got home. Sweet LJ was out of town, and I cried on the phone to him. I want my baby to have a chance to arrive when she's ready. I'm not convinced she's a giant. I don't want to be induced unless I really, absolutely have to be. I have to have another growth ultrasound soon. I want to enjoy these last few weeks, but I'm getting depressed by all the suggested intervention.
